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Fighting: |
Ex |
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Agility: |
Ex |
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Strength: |
Gd |
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Endurance: |
Rm |
|
Reason: |
Ty |
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Intuition: |
Gd |
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Psyche: |
Gd |
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Health: |
80 |
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Karma: |
20 |
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Resources: |
Ex |
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Popularity: |
1 (10 in WWII) |
Real Name: Frank Bohannan
Occupation: Government agent
Legal Status: U.S. citizen with criminal record (paroled)
Identity: Publicly known
Place of Birth: Unknown
Marital Status: Unknown
Known Relatives: None
Base of Operations: Washington D.C.
Past Group Affiliations: Ally of Stonewall and Super Sabre, member of Freedom Force
Known Powers:
None
Equipment:
Costume: Provides Excellent protection from physical attacks and Good protection from heat and cold.
Daggers: He carries four steel daggers in sheaths behind his neck. These do Good damage and can be thrown accurately up to 20’.
Revolver: .454 Casull with 5-bullet cylinder. It has Typical range. He carries three armor-piercing (10 points damage) and two rubber bullets (Good Slugfest damage) in the cylinder.
Utility Belt: Ten pouches carry a variety of useful items. The belt buckle conceals a 50’ reel of fine wire and a hook. Among the other items are:
- Flash grenades: Amazing intensity; temporary blindness for anyone facing the flash.
- Incendiary grenade: Typical intensity.
- Lockpicks and skeleton keys
- Mini-torch: Oxyacetelene flame, Remarkable intensity.
- Plastic explosive and timer: Incredible damage to a single target. Timer can be set for 24 hours.
- Smoke bomb: Excellent intensity, covers 1 area.
- Tear gas: Typical intensity, covers 40’ square foot area.
Talents:
He is trained in Martial Arts B, C, and E, Wrestling, Thrown Objects (especially knives), Acrobatics, Tumbling, Marksmanship, Espionage/Detection, Weapons Mastery, and Tracking. He has a basic knowledge of German and Russian.
Contacts:
If the adventure occurs during the period 1941 -1955, he has contacts with the U.S. military, FBI, OSS, and the early CIA. From 1956 to the recent past, he only had contacts with his allies Stonewall and Super Sabre. His current job with the Freedom Force has restored some contacts with the government.
Role-Playing Notes:
During WWII adventures, the Crimson Commando is a valiant crusader against the Axis, although he is somewhat jealous of better known superhumans. In his modern-day vigilante career, he believes his ruthless extermination of criminals strikes fear in the survivors and makes the police’s job easier. Even if he later discovers that he was wrong in his actions, he believes that his ultimate goal justifies criminal acts. Although he might feel jealousy toward Captain America I, he might feel sympathetic toward John Walker (a.k.a. Captain America IV, SuperPatriot, and now U.S.Agent).
History:
Frank Bohannon was a patriot who was so inspired by Captain America that he adopted a similar identity, that of the Crimson Commando. During WWII, he operated in a variety of the theatres, whether on the homefront confronting fifth columnists and saboteurs or battling behind enemy lines. He was joined by Stonewall and Super Sabre, two men with actual superpowers. Together, they formed a second-string “Invaders! All-Winners Squad.”
Despite his enthusiasm, the Crimson Commando was never as well known or well connected as Captain America. This caused him some feelings of jealousy and resentment, but he carried on his fight. After the war, he continued to battle anyone he considered a foe of the United States. As the anti-communist hysteria of the McCarthy era increased, the Crimson Commando reveled in his homefront battles against perceived Communist agents. Like the McCarthy inquisitions, the Crimson Commando’s crusade attacked innocent people with increasing frequency. The government considered transferring him to the Korean warzone, but felt that the inclusion of superhumans in the conflict could escalate into WWlll. In truth, Crimson Commando was becoming an embarassment. The government finally ordered the Crimson Commando into retirement and quietly destroyed any trace of ever working for them.
Bohannan felt angry and rejected. He was too much a patriot to openly challenge his government’s orders. Instead, he and his companions retired to a lodge bordering Adirondack State Park in upstate New York and exorcising their fury by hunting big game.
It was not an easy retirement. As the 1950s gave way to the 60’s and then the 70’s, society changed in ways Bohannan detested. He saw society collapsing into a morass of crime and perversion. Finally, the trio decided the time had come for their return, albeit secret. They waged a covert war within society against the criminals they perceived as destroying it. They adopted the tactic of identifying and kidnapping criminals, then spiriting them away to their rural lodge. There, the criminals were released and hunted. There were never any survivors.
It is unknown how many people the trio killed nor is it known how many may have been innocent of any real crimes beyond offending the Crimson Commando’s sensibilities. It is known that the trio’s private hunt came to an end when they mistook Storm for a criminal. They had found her unconscious at the stillsmoldering ruins of the home of Jean Grey’s parents. Since Storm had some of their household goods in her possession, they mistook her for a looter and hence a criminal for the slaughter.
Storm was released along with a drug pusher. In the hunt that followed, she had the chance to behead Super Sabre. Since she did not, she caused the Crimson Commando and Stonewall to begin to doubt the validity of the vigilantism. Still, Bohannan was able to rationalize the continuation of the hunt. When Storm saved Stonewall from drowning, the Crimson Commando returned the favor by killing the drug pusher who was about to kill Storm.
She challenged him to single combat. In the fierce battle, they were evenly matched. Still, Storm triumphed and dictated her terms. The Crimson Commando and his allies were ordered to surrender to the police and confess their crimes or she would hunt them and execute them herself. Stonewall convinced him that it was better to surrender to the law and have the chance to explain their actions in court. The next day, they surrendered.
The trial never occurred. Dr. Valerie Cooper of the Commission on Super-Human Affairs arranged for Stonewall and the Crimson Commando to be paroled to her custody. She ordered them to join Freedom Force.
They were soon joined by their friend, Super Sabre, whom they had believed killed in a landslide while hunting Storm. The trio soon overcame the contempt of the younger, mutant members of the Freedom Force. The experience has proven good for the Crimson Commando. He now has the chance to serve his country by battling its foes in open, government-sanctioned combat. He is also continuing to open his mind to greater tolerance.